Green Spandex
by ignorethisiwas12
Summary: It was a youthful spring day when he received the spandex suit from his most magnificent sensei. He would never forget that moment, and neither would anyone else Gai presented the jumpsuit to!
1. Green Spandex

**Title****:** Green Spandex**  
><strong>**Author****: **TinaBanina96**  
><strong>**Summary:** Lee remembers that one glorious moment when he received it. It was a youthful spring day when he received the spandex suit from his magnificent sensei.

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><p><strong>AN:<strong>** It's 6 in the morning ^^ Quite an early start for me but I had to get this down. Oh how I love Lee :D He's so freaking enthusiastic about everything! Please R&R for free cookies!**

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><p><strong>Green Spandex<strong>

It had been the most glorious day of his life. The day Gai-sensei had presented him with the suit.

The memory brought tears to Lee's eyes. To think, his magnificent sensei had deemed him, a ninja with no talent at all for genjutsu or ninjutsu, worthy of wearing the green spandex suit!

It was most youthful and radiant in its beauty. Green, like the leaves in the springtime. It felt like a second skin, fitting so perfectly. Comfortable, flexible and breathable. It was truly a most ingenious invention.

Gai-sensei had assured him that his progress would be much faster while wearing it. Of course, his beloved sensei had been right.

Wearing the suit made him want to work harder. Without it, he could only see himself doing 1000 kicks in one hour. With that amazing thing, Lee knew he could accomplish 2000, or even 3000 kicks.

Thus was the power of the suit.

But this was not merely an article of clothing. A unitard to be worn carelessly. No, no no. The suit was a work of art. It represented Gai-sensei's belief in him, and Lee's belief in himself.

Before donning the suit, Rock Lee had just bee Rock Lee. But with the suit on, Lee was Konoha's Beautiful Wild Green Beast! A force to be reckoned with! He was the most youthful and honourable of all the leaf shinobi (with the exception of Gai-sensei, of course).

Gai-sensei had given him the suit on a spring day. They had trained hard, having run 500 laps around Konoha while juggling oranges. Gai-sensei assured him that this would improve their ability to multi task.

It was one of those days when everything was just perfect. His sensei had successfully defeated Kakashi Hatake, his eternal rival, in a fierce competition. In Lee's opinion, that had been the most skilful thumb war he had ever seen!

After running their laps and eating their citrus fruits, he and Gai-sensei had sat in the practise ground. Gai-sensei had congratulated Lee on a wonderful day of training, and told Lee he had a surprise.

It was then when he had presented the suit.

"Now listen Lee, my most adorable student." said Gai-sensei, striking his patented 'nice guy pose'. "You have come far in your training. Your taijutsu is improving amazingly, and your passion burns brightly like the flames of youth! It is with great pride, that I present to you my most valued item."

Lee had felt overcome with emotion, seeing his sensei holding out the suit.

"With this," said Gai "you will be able to do many things! Let the suit help you achieve your dream of becoming a splendid ninja! Do not let anyone extinguish the youth in your heart! Truly, you are on the path of the great shinobi!"

"Gai-sensei!" Lee had said, tears of joy streaming down his face.

"Lee!" his teacher had replied, wearing a similar expression.

With that, the two had embraced most youthfully, with the setting sun providing a most splendid background.

From then on, Lee had worn the suit with pride. It was his most treasured possession.

Lee knew, that with the suit on, he could do anything.


	2. Passing On the Power

**AN:** **Originally a companion piece to Green Spandex, but now the second part. You know who's awesome? Might Gai! That's who :D This is Gai's memories of Lee.  
>Disclaimer: I can only dream of owning Naruto…<strong>

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><p><strong>Passing On the Power (of Youth!)<strong>

Gai had spotted him one day, back when he had just become a jounin. He was passing by the Academy, when he'd seen the boy with the long black plait. The boy was facing a group of other children, who appeared to be teasing him.

"You'll never be a ninja! You can't do anything!" said one of the children at the front of the group.

The lone boy stood firm, not wavering He was a small boy, with notably thick eyebrows, much like his own. Gai admired his spirit. It reminded him of himself in a way.

He had heard the boy's voice, calling from the Academy, rebutting what the other children were saying.

"I will become a ninja, even if I cannot perform ninjutsu or genjutsu! My name is Rock Lee, and I will become a powerful ninja!"

So his name was Lee… It seemed the rumours had been true. There was a student at the Academy who could not perform any ninjutsu of genjutsu at all, but was still determined to become a ninja.

At that moment, Lee's most passionate outburst had set something off inside Konoha's Sublime Green Beast. Gai promised himself that he would help this boy, who was as youthful and passionate as himself! If he could not get that boy on his genin team, then he would do 1000 laps around the Ninja Academy, and climb Hokage Mountain 100 times!

Lee had indeed been placed on Gai's team, after a visit to the Hokage. Gai had also received the Hyuuga prodigy, and a weapons specialist. It was a most youthful and powerful team.

At first, the Hyuuga prodigy (Neji) and the talentless boy (Lee) had gotten along terribly. It reminded Gai of his own rivalry with Kakashi Hatake.

Thus Gai had deigned it his duty to personally train Lee in the art of taijutsu. Lee was not a natural talent, like Neji or that Uchiha boy, but he worked hard.

Slowly, Lee had blossomed into a very powerful taijutsu specialist, and modeled himself after Gai.

The day Lee had cut his hair like Gai's, had been one of the best days of Gai's life. His adorable, beloved student, wished to be like him? It was most magnificent!

He had presented Lee with his most prized creation soon after that.

It was the green spandex suit. It was breathable, comfortable, flexible and at the height of style. He had created it specially for performing the Lotus technique in, as it was skin-tight and didn't flop around everywhere when he was performing the technique.

Now, he was handing it down to Lee, in the hope that it would inspire him. Lee deserved it. He was ready.

"With this," he had said, holding the precious jumpsuit out towards the excited boy "you will be able to do many things! Let the suit help you achieve your dream of becoming a splendid ninja! Do not let anyone extinguish the youth in your heart! Truly, you are on the path of the great shinobi!"

Lee had been overjoyed. They had hugged most youthfully, emotion flowing out from them, under a most beautiful sunset. Gai swore he heard the crash of waves, but since they had been in the middle of a training field at the time… well even Gai didn't think that was possible.

Seeing Lee with the suit at their next training session brought a tear to Gai's eye. He looked so… confident, and happy! Now there were two Green Beasts in Konoha.

Gai was proud of his most favourite student, the boy who was like the son he never had.

He was glad to pass on the Power of Youth to someone such as Lee.

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><p><strong>A bit of a rambling story from me. Please leave a review! <strong>


	3. Fanning the Flames

**AN:** **OK I'm sorry! This was supposed to stay a two shot, but I just couldn't help myself! It needed to be continued XD BTW this may actually turn into a collection of oneshots, but there's no guarantee. UPDATE: Typos have been fixed!  
>DISCLAIMER: If I owned Naruto, we would have dragged Sasuke's ass back to Konoha aaaaaaages ago. Not very interesting, but at least everyone would be happy!<strong>

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><p><strong><span>Fanning the Flames<span>**

From the first moment he had met his team, Gai had quickly noticed that he and Lee were clearly the most passionate members of it. They worked hard, and embodied the power of youth. But you see, this was a problem for Gai.

Team Gai did not consist of only himself and his most adorable pupil Rock Lee. There were also two others, who had not quite achieved the same level of passion that Lee and himself had. Gai desperately wanted his team to be _the_ most youthful and brightly blazing team in all of Konoha. They had to be, in order to defeat the team of his eternal rival, Kakashi.

Gai understood the girl, Tenten. She had a most fiery personality, and was quite passionate about weaponry. The flames of youth burned brightly within her, and Gai saw so much potential that could be utilised.

Training with Tenten, he had come to see that she was truly a force to be reckoned with, able to keep Lee under control. He had also noted that Tenten did not seem as open to hugging and displays of pure youthful emotions as Lee was.

In comparison, his other pupil, the young Hyuuga prodigy, had not had that same fire. Neji, in comparison to Lee, was a natural genius. His kekkai genkai, the famed Byakugan, was the strongest in him than it had been in any other Hyuuga for generations. Had his father Hizashi, been born a minute or so earlier, Neji would have been the Hyuuga heir. But alas, this was not so. Neji was a branch family member, and in his own words, 'fated to serve the Main house forever'. Neji had held much bitterness and anger inside of himself. At first, Gai had struggled to reach him.

But Gai was not a quitter. He had worked hard, and managed to reach Neji. Slowly, Neji had let go of that resentment that made him so cold. The defrosting process had started thanks to little Naruto Uzumaki, the Kyuubi child.

Ah, the flames of youth burned so brightly in the little blond prankster. His passion rivalled Lee's!

After Naruto had successfully defeated Neji during the Chunin exams (much to Gai's disappointment and surprise, as the boy was on Kakashi's team, and 'dead-last' in his year), the ice on his emotions had broken and he finally allowed Gai to reach him.

Gai had fanned the flame of youth that now burned so brightly within Neji, and done the same with Tenten. While neither showed the enthusiasm that Lee did, both worked hard, and did their best to improve their skills.

Thus, Gai had felt it was time to give the rest of Team Gai the opportunity to experience the joy that he and Lee had. It was time to give them the jumpsuit.

At the time, Lee had just come out of the hospital, having suffered grievous injuries inflicted on him by the now Kazakage, Gaara. Lee had insisted on coming with Gai to watch Team Gai's practise session. Gai knew better than to protest. His pupil could be very stubborn.

Lee had seated himself at the side of the training ground, while Tenten, Neji and Gai had trained. He had sat with a most sad look on his face. Gai could tell he longed to be sparring with them. But Gai could not let Lee train! He was still recovering.

At the end of the training session, the team had gathered around Lee, so he was part of the group.

They had sat in the training ground in the fast fading light.

"Neji. Tenten. Lee." he had said, nodding his head at each of his students.

"You are all strong, passionate shinobi. I am very proud of my pupils."

He reached into a bag he had prepared especially for that occasion. With a flourish, he had revealed two of his most wonderful jumpsuits

"Neji and Tenten! You have worked so hard this last month, especially after the devastating invasion of our beloved village! That is why I feel it is time I gave you the same opportunity Lee has had!"

Holding up the jumpsuits in one hand, he struck the 'Nice Guy' pose.

"Behold! My most magnificent jumpsuit! Breathable, flexible, comfortable, just perfect for the fledgling shinobi!"

Their reactions had not been what Gai had expected. Both were looking at him like he was crazy. Maybe they hadn't understood him?

Before he could figure out what the expressions on Neji and Tenten's faces meant, he was interrupted by a terrible sound.

"Gai-sensei!" wailed Lee, who looked dejected."You…you have replaced me! Do you not think I will ever become a ninja?"

Gai had been appalled. Replace Lee? Never!

"I would never do that Lee! You are my prized student!" said Gai, voice filled with emotion. "I simply wanted Neji and Tenten to experience the joy that the jumpsuit brings! I wanted them to join us in our hip and youthful trendsetting look! Do not be sad Lee! You…you…"

Gai's eyes had filled with tears, passionately overflowing.

"You are my most favourite student!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

And like before, the sun had set in orange and pink splendour while the two green beasts of Konoha had hugged. It had been a magnificent moment, two powerful shinobi sharing their feelings with the world!

By the time the two had stopped crying, Neji and Tenten had gone.

Come to think of it, the jumpsuits had disappeared too.

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><p><strong><span>Two updates in one day :D The idea for this popped into my head. Please review!<span>**


	4. Burning Brightly

**AN:** **This is an incredibly badly written chapter. Just warning you guys :L The next part, focus will return to Lee!  
><strong>**DISCLAIMER:**** If I owned Naruto, the anime would have been dubbed at the same rate as it came out. It would also play continually on NZ television, 24 hours a day.**

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><p><strong>Burning Brightly<strong>

In a life that burned brightly like the flames of youth, there had to be moments of darkness. For Gai, one of his darkest moments had been Konoha after Orochimaru's invasion.

His most adorable student, Lee, was in hospital, no one knowing whether he would ever become a ninja again. Konoha was in desperate need of a new Hokage, after the tragic loss of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, after his fight with Orochimaru.

And to top it all off, he had just kicked one of the Legendary Sannin in the face.

He hadn't known that it was Jiraiya. He'd actually been aiming for Itachi Uchiha and… the other guy whose name he couldn't remember. Or maybe there hadn't been someone else. Come to think of it, no, Gai couldn't remember anyone else being with the Uchiha.

It appeared though, that Uchiha and the possible partner had already left, leaving Jiraiya and Naruto, and the other Uchiha behind.

Now, Gai liked to look on the bright side of things. Yes, he had managed to attack one of the strongest ninjas Konoha had ever produced. But he had done it with style!

That Dynamic Entry had been the most dynamic entry he had ever done in his life! Especially considering he'd been using his forehead protector as a mirror!

If only his dear student had been there to see it.

Gai had wiped a tear from his eye at the thought of Lee in hospital. Though he knew that emotion was a sign of a truly passionate shinobi, he was also aware of the fact that now was not an appropriate time.

Young Sasuke Uchiha. It seemed that his sad past was becoming part of his bright present. The boy's brother had left him in a bad state. Slumped against the strange, fleshy wall, he looked completely broken, like the youth had been sucked out of him.

Gai found himself listening to the conversation between Jiraiya and Naruto, Kakashi's student. Actually it was an argument really.

The blond boy was yelling in anger at the actions of the eldest Uchiha, saying most inspirational words, if rather loud. Gai found himself liking the boy, even if he had defeated his darling student Neji. This Naruto showed real… passion!

"Excuse me Gai. This child's feelings are understandable but we must still quickly rescue Sasuke." Jiraiya shot Sasuke a concerned look. Gai nodded. The boy was injured gravely. How had he reached this condition?

Ah, of course. That strange Sharingan of Itachi Uchiha.

"Kakashi has had approximately the same jutsu. He stays in bed until his sense return to normal." Gai spoke of his eternal rival. It made sense that Sasuke, the student of his rival, would be like his rival.

"Kakashi-sensei!" yelled Naruto. Gai chose not to reply. It seemed the boy was surprised that his most eternal rival had also suffered from the powerful genjutsu.

"When students are injured… well this time I think it has harmed his mind." Gai thought of Lee, lying in his bed, in critical condition. "Medical care specialists should always be around in case this continues to happen, don't you think?"

"Hmmm…. So, to go searching for that person?" The sannin spoke, pondering the thought.

Gai froze. He could not… was he really suggesting that?

"That person…Could it be…" Gai prayed for Jiraiya to say her name. She could save Lee. She, of all people could heal his most adorable, and badly beaten student!

Jiraiya had indeed meant her. Later, when the four of them had made it back to Konoha, Gai had become incredibly hopeful.

"Jiraiya… please find Tsunade, and bring her back to us!" he smiled in confidence. Jiraiya was one of the Legendary Sannin, the most powerful and magnificent ninja to come out of Konoha. If anyone could…

"DON'T YOU WORRY, WE'LL FIND HER!"

Gai almost jumped. He was glad he didn't as with Sasuke slung over his back, it would not have been a very good idea.

"TAKE CARE OF SASUKE MR. BUSHY BROWS!"

That boy… he was so… so… YOUTHFUL! His burning passion and dedication to Sasuke, his bundying belief and confidence… it was all so beautiful. How alike he was to Lee.

Gai found himself filling with joy as Jiraiya wished him farewell. Quickly, he made a decision before he and Naruto left.

"Naruto, you've got guts! I like kids like that!" with one arm, Gai reached inside his flak jacket. Where was it? "Here, I'm giving this to you." He patted the interior pockets until – of course, there it was.

"This is the reason why Lee is so strong!" Naruto's face was bright, so eager an enthusiastic!

Gai didn't have the heart to force him to wait any longer. With a flourish, he pulled out the suit.

"This!" he announced. "It's the ultimate streamlined, form fitting, easily accessible, perfectly made bodysuit!" He flashed a huge smile. He, Might Gai, was so kind! "Wear it while you're training and you'll definietely know the difference! You'll never look back! Our Lee-" he held back a tear "-wears it 24/7 and of course, it is my most beloved piece of ninja must have!"

"Cooooool!" Gai could hear the excitement and admiration in Naruto's voice. Clearly, unlike Jiraiya who was looking at him with a most strange expression, Naruto had most fantastic style.

Gai watched the two walk off, Naruto waving the green jumpsuit around in his hands, and lifted a hand in farewell.

His Lee may have been injured, but at least there was still one other young shinobi who's youthful flames burned as brightly as his most beloved students' did.

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><p><strong>And… I don't even know what to say…<strong>


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